Disclosed is a single brew beverage cartridge for use in a brewing apparatus. The cartridge includes a lid and a cup shaped filter suspended below the lid and in which a beverage brewing ingredient is held. The lid includes an annular collar to prevent the lid from deforming when a needle of the brewing apparatus pierces it during the brewing process. Preferably the cartridge is formed of materials, e.g., paper/paperboard, so that it is compostable and biodegradable.
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12. In combination a single brew beverage cartridge and a beverage brewing apparatus, said single brew beverage cartridge being compostable and biodegradable and comprising a filter, a beverage brewing ingredient, and a lid, said lid comprising a piercable portion, a flange and a collar, said collar comprising a sidewall having a peripheral surface projecting downward from said flange and extending about a longitudinal axis and being resistant to flexure when a force is applied to said lid in a direction parallel to said longitudinal axis, said filter comprising a cup-shaped hollow body holding said beverage brewing ingredient therein, said lid sealing said beverage brewing ingredient in said cup-shaped hollow body, said cup-shaped hollow body being formed of a single layer of paper or paperboard having a slightly tapering cylindrical sidewall and a generally planar bottom wall, said cylindrical sidewall having first and second cylindrical sidewall portions, said first cylindrical sidewall portion being located above said second cylindrical sidewall portion, said second cylindrical sidewall portion having a lower end terminating at said generally planar bottom wall, said second cylindrical sidewall portion and said generally planar bottom wall providing a substantially large surface area through which a brewed beverage can pass, said cylindrical sidewall portion comprising a polymer welding said first cylindrical sidewall portion to said peripheral surface, said beverage brewing apparatus comprising a brewing chamber, a supply of a hot liquid, and a piercing member, said cartridge being configured to be suspended by said flange in said beverage brewing chamber, said piercing member being arranged to apply a force in said longitudinal direction to said piercable portion of said lid to pierce said lid when said cartridge is suspended within said brewing chamber to introduce a hot liquid into said cup-shaped body, said polymer of said first cylindrical sidewall portion forming a barrier deterring the passage of said hot liquid through said first cylindrical sidewall portion and directing the flow of said hot liquid to said second cylindrical sidewall portion to cause said second cylindrical sidewall portion to expand radially outward unconstrained by said brewing chamber to facilitate the mixing of said hot liquid and said beverage brewing ingredient within said cartridge and permit said brewed beverage to exit therefrom.
1. A single brew beverage cartridge for use in a beverage brewing apparatus, the apparatus comprising a brewing chamber, a supply of a hot liquid, and a piercing member, said cartridge being compostable and biodegradable and comprising a filter, a beverage brewing ingredient, and a lid, said lid comprising a piercable portion, a flange and a collar, said collar comprising a sidewall having a peripheral surface projecting downward from said flange and extending about a longitudinal axis, said lid being resistant to flexure when a force is applied to said piercable portion of said lid in a direction parallel to said longitudinal axis, said filter comprising a cup-shaped hollow body holding said beverage brewing ingredient therein, said lid sealing said beverage brewing ingredient in said cup-shaped hollow body, said cup-shaped hollow body being formed of a single layer of paper or paperboard having a slightly tapering cylindrical sidewall and a generally planar bottom wall, said cylindrical sidewall having first and second cylindrical sidewall portions, said first cylindrical sidewall portion being located above said second cylindrical sidewall portion, said second cylindrical sidewall portion having a lower end terminating at said generally planar bottom wall, said second cylindrical sidewall portion and said generally planar bottom wall providing a substantially large surface area through which a brewed beverage can pass, said first cylindrical sidewall portion comprising a polymer welding said first cylindrical sidewall portion to said peripheral surface, said cartridge being configured to be suspended by said flange in the brewing chamber of the apparatus, the piercing member of the apparatus being arranged to apply a force in said longitudinal direction to said piercable portion of said lid to pierce said lid when said cartridge is suspended within the brewing chamber to introduce a hot liquid into said cup-shaped body, said polymer of said first cylindrical sidewall portion forming a barrier deterring the passage of the hot liquid through said first cylindrical sidewall portion and directing the flow of the hot liquid to said second cylindrical sidewall portion to cause said second cylindrical sidewall portion to expand radially outward unconstrained by the brewing chamber to facilitate the mixing of the hot liquid and said beverage brewing ingredient within said cartridge and permit said brewed beverage to exit therefrom.
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This application claims priority from Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/547,968, filed on Oct. 17, 2011, entitled Single Brew Beverage Cartridge System Including Same and Method of Use, which application is assigned to the same assignee as this application and whose disclosure is incorporated by reference herein.
“Not Applicable”
“Not Applicable”
This invention relates generally to beverage brewing and more particularly to single brew cartridges for brewing beverages in single serve apparatus and methods of brewing such beverages.
The patent literature includes various examples of single brew beverage filter packages or cartridges for use in brewing apparatus. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,325,765 discloses a beverage filter cartridge that includes an impermeable pierceable base having a predetermined shape and an opening at one end. The base is formed of polystyrene, ethylene vinyl alcohol and polyethylene. A self-supporting wettable filter element is disposed in the base. The filter element may be made of a lightweight, two-phase heat sealable paper of cellulosic and synthetic fibers. The synthetic fibers may be PVC or polypropylene so that they are compatible with the material of the base and are therefore easily sealed to the base in communication with the opening in the base using heat, ultrasonic energy or microwave energy. The filter element has a form different and smaller than the predetermined shape of the base so that the filter element diverges from the base and divides the base into two sealed chambers, a first chamber for storing an extract of the beverage to be made, and a second empty chamber for accessing the beverage after the beverage outflow from the filter has been made by combining a liquid with the extract. An impermeable pierceable cover is provided sealingly engaged with the opening in the base to form an impermeable cartridge. U.S. Pat. No. 5,840,189 discloses a somewhat similar beverage filter cartridge.
While the cartridges of those patents are suitable for their purposes they are nevertheless somewhat complex in construction, e.g., they require a self supporting, e.g., plastic material, outer base in which the filter element is suspended to break up the interior of the base into the two chambers.
In Published U.S. Application 2005/0287251 there is disclosed a disposable beverage filter package that does not make use of an outer base. In particular, the filter package comprises a flexible and permeable filter pouch in the form of a cone having a sidewall extending downwardly from a top opening to a closed bottom. The pouch is suspended from and supported exclusively by an imperforate impermeable lid configured and arranged to close the top opening and to coact with the pouch in defining an enclosed chamber. The side wall of the pouch has an upper region with a permeability that is greater than that of a lower region. This difference in permeability may be provided by various means, e.g., by adding an inner cone shaped insert of the same material as that of the outer wall. A dry beverage medium is loosely contained within the filter pouch. The lid is piercable to admit a flow of heated liquid under pressure into the chamber, with the permeability of the pouch being such that the admitted liquid is retained temporarily in the chamber for infusion with the beverage medium before permeating through and flowing downwardly along the exterior of the sidewall as a liquid beverage.
While the cartridge of that application appears generally suitable for its purposes, it is still somewhat complex in construction (e.g., makes use of a conical filter whose lower end, in which the beverage brewing ingredient will be concentrated, is of thickened or double wall thickness), is somewhat limited in the amount of beverage brewing ingredient it can hold, and may leave something to be desired from the standpoint of effectiveness in brewing the beverage.
Thus, there presently exists a need for a disposable beverage filter cartridge for use in beverage brewers, with the cartridge being low in cost, simple in construction and preferably compostable and biodegradable so that it can be readily and safely disposed of after use. The subject invention addresses that need.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention there is provided a single brew beverage cartridge for use in a beverage brewing apparatus, the apparatus comprising a brewing chamber, a supply of a hot liquid, and a piercing member. The cartridge is compostable and biodegradable and comprises a filter, a beverage-brewing ingredient, and a lid. The lid comprises a piercable portion, a flange and a collar, with the collar comprising a side wall having a peripheral surface projecting downward from the flange and extending about a longitudinal axis. The lid is resistant to flexure when a force is applied to the piercable portion of the lid in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis. The filter comprises an expandable, cup-shaped hollow body formed of a layer of material having a first portion secured to periphery of the collar and a second portion extending substantially below the collar. The cup-shaped body holds the beverage brewing ingredient, with the lid sealing the beverage brewing ingredient in the cup-shaped body. The cartridge is arranged to be suspended by its flange in the brewing chamber of the apparatus. The piercing member of the brewing apparatus is arranged to apply a force in the longitudinal direction to the piercable portion of the lid of the cartridge to pierce the lid when the cartridge is suspended within the brewing chamber. The collar of the lid of the cartridge is resistant to flexure by the application of that force to facilitate the piercing of the lid by the piercing member.
In accordance with one aspect of this invention the lid is formed of paper/paperboard including a biodegradable coating of polyethylene. The cup-shaped body of the filter comprises a layer of paper comprising a multitude of paper fibers.
In accordance with another aspect of this invention there is provided a system made up of a single brew cartridge as set forth above in combination with a single serve beverage brewing apparatus.
In accordance with another aspect of this invention provided a method of brewing a beverage using apparatus like that set forth above. That method basically entails suspending the single brew cartridge by its collar in the brewing chamber of the apparatus. Thereafter, the piercing member of the brewing apparatus is caused to apply a force in the longitudinal direction to the piercable portion of the lid when the cartridge is suspended within the brewing chamber to pierce through the lid. The collar of the lid resists flexure of the lid from the application of that force to facilitate the piercing of the lid by the piercing member. Hot liquid is then introduced through the piercing member into the cartridge to brew the beverage therein, whereupon the beverage can flow out of the cartridge through the second portion of the filter.
Referring now to the various figures of the drawing wherein like reference characters refer to like parts, there is shown in
Thus, the cartridges of this invention can be used in any type of brewing apparatus that has a chamber for receiving the cartridge and a needle or some other piercing means for introducing hot pressurized water into the cartridge. In fact, the cartridges of the subject invention can be used in prior art brewing apparatus like those Keurig brewing machines used for cartridges like disclosed in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,325,765 and 5,840,189. One example of such prior art brewing machines is shown schematically at 10 in
Turning now to
Turning now to
The cup-shaped filter 24 is formed of any suitable permeable/perforate material and is arranged to be expandable (for reasons to be described later). The expandability of the cup shaped filter may be provided by fluting or otherwise contouring, e.g., dimpling, etc., the material making up the filter so that the volume encompassed by the filter expands when the hot liquid is introduced into the beverage brewing ingredient held within the filter. Alternatively, the material making up the filter may be chosen so that it inherently expands during the brewing process.
In the exemplary embodiment shown in
It should be pointed out at this juncture that the materials making up the components of the cartridge 20 as described above are exemplary of various materials that can be used in accordance with this invention. For example, the cartridge can be formed primarily of paper or paperboard in the interest of compostability, biodegradability and cost. Such a cartridge may be constructed similarly to that shown in
In this embodiment, the annular collar 28 is a separate component from the planar disk 22, but is secured to it to form a unitary member. To that end, the collar 28 is formed from a spiral wound paperboard tube that is 1⅞ inch in outside diameter, with a wall thickness of 0.07 inches and is cut to a length of 0.3 inches. The cut tube is coated with ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer to render it weldable. The ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer coating weight is 2-3 pounds per 3000 square feet. The cut tube forming the collar is welded to underside of the disk 22, with the edge of the collar (tube) centered on the flat side of the disk, so that a 1/16 inch lip of the disk extends all around the collar. That lip forms the flange 34 of the cartridge to support the cartridge in the brewing apparatus.
The filter component 24 of this embodiment of the cartridge comprises heat sealable filter paper sheet that is made up of a filtration layer formed from coarse long fiber pulp (e.g., abaca fibers, wood pulp, and cellulose rayon fiber) and a sealing layer (e.g., polyethylene and ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer). The filter paper sheet has a basis weight of 41 grams per square meter. In order to form the cup-shaped filter a flat sheet of the filter paper is pressed into a heated female die with a heated male die. The combination of heat and pressure from the dies forms the filter paper sheet into the shape of a cup, with a mouth having a diameter just slightly larger than 1⅞ inches and a depth of 1½ inches and a bottom diameter of 1½ inches.
The filter paper cup is filled with the desired quantity of beverage powder, for example 12 grams of ground coffee. The mouth (peripheral edge) of the filter cup is slipped over the collar 28 and the abutting portions of the mouth of the filter cup and the outer surface of the collar are heat sealed together, thereby completing the assembly of the cartridge.
Any cartridge constructed in accordance with this invention can be used with a conventional single serve brewing apparatus 10 to brew a single serving of the beverage from the beverage making ingredient held in the cartridge. That action will now be described by reference to
As should be appreciated by those skilled in the art, since the cup shaped filter is unconstrained within the chamber, when the hot water is introduced into the beverage brewing ingredient, the filter expands somewhat, e.g., its fluting opens so that the sidewall bulges out slightly as shown in
Turning now to
The cartridge 20′ includes a cup-shaped filter 24′ that is of similar shape as filter 24. The filter 24′ is formed of a permeable/perforate paper. In order to ensure that the top edge of the paper cup shaped filter is permanently fixedly secured to the outer surface 32 of the collar and remains so affixed during the brewing process, e.g., to prevent a blow out of the cartridge during the brewing process, a ring 42 of a polymer material, e.g., polyethylene or polylactic acid, is provided on the filter 24′ contiguous with its upper edge. The strip may be approximately 10 mm wide by 130 mm long, and may be 38 microns thick. This strip acts as reinforcement for the paper making up the filter. In particular, the polymer film is first sealed to the paper and becomes embedded in the paper fibers as shown in
As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, when brewing a beverage using any cartridge constructed in accordance with this invention in any conventional brewing apparatus like described above, the coffee may splash in the brewing chamber leaving a residue on the walls of the chamber. That residue can be the source of an objectionable taste contamination if the next beverage brewed is not the same beverage as the previous one. For example, if the apparatus is used to brew a cup of coffee and then is to be used to brew a cup of tea, any residue of the brewed coffee left in the chamber may objectionably affect the taste of the brewed tea. To minimize that contamination potential one can minimize splashing by making the ring 42 extend downward a substantially greater distance of the height of the sidewall 36. Thus, the strip 42 of polymer may be made at least 30 mm high so that the area 24A′ extends like a skirt substantially below the lid to help to direct the beverage flow downward. At the same time the ring of polymer still acts as reinforcement for the paper.
Inasmuch as the cartridges of this invention have substantially exposed areas into which moisture and air can gain ingress to potentially degrade the beverage brewing ingredient until the cartridge is ready for use, this invention contemplates the use of a moisture and air impermeable cover, e.g., a polymer or foil or laminate combination, to act as a barrier to the passage of air therethrough into the cartridge. Depending upon the construction of the cartridge the cover may be in the form of a barrier for use on the lid portion of the cartridge or on the filter portion or on both portions. Thus, the cover may be constructed to isolate all portions of the cartridge from the ambient air until the cartridge is ready for use. For example the cover may be in the form of a pouch or bag 44 as shown in
Irrespective of which portion(s) of the cartridge the cover is constructed to overlie to prevent the ingress of air therethrough, the cover should be removable so that the cartridge's filter is exposed (free to enable the brewed beverage to pass through its wall) when the cartridge is ready to be used in the brewing apparatus.
Without further elaboration the foregoing will so fully illustrate my invention that others may, by applying current or future knowledge, adopt the same for use under various conditions of service.
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Executed on | Assignor | Assignee | Conveyance | Frame | Reel | Doc |
Oct 12 2012 | Fres-Co System USA, Inc. | (assignment on the face of the patent) | / | |||
Dec 17 2012 | BEER, JEFFREY SCOTT | FRES-CO SYSTEM USA, INC | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 029538 | /0613 |
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